The timing couldn’t be better. Interest in food culture is peaking, and the act of eating, perhaps with a smartphone on the tablecloth, has become divorced from the pleasures of socializing. Those with a misanthropic bent might even argue that dining with others takes away from the culinary experience, diverting one’s focus from the garlicky aroma of a winter black truffle or the buttery texture of top-grade raw tuna to the tedious obligation of sustaining conversation.

“The taste of persons eating alone seems different, and even more intense, according to our guests,” says Marina van Goor, owner of the temporary eatery, which is called Eenmaal. As such, the chef takes care to serve four-course meals (at a moderate €35, or roughly $48, including drink) prepared from quality local and organic ingredients. Even the interior is left intentionally raw and no-frills, to emphasize the simple pleasure of unapologetically eating alone.